KWSO News COVID-19 Update 4/14/20 5pm

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs issued their COVID-19 Community Update this afternoon reporting that 22individuals have been tested for the virus with 17 of those tests returning as negative and 5 tests pending results.

As of today there are 1633 positive cases of COVID-19 in Oregon, with 30,730 negative test results.  55 people have died from this coronavirus.

The update encourages:

• Social Distancing – staying at least 6 feet away from each other
• Not gathering in groups
• Staying out of crowded places and mass gatherings

In the update, some encouraging words on what we can do…  “Keeping space between you and others is one of the best tools we have to avoid being exposed to this virus and slowing the spread.  So far, we are fortunate not to have any cases here.  Let’s all be diligent in Social Distancing to ensure that we do our best to keep this virus out of our community!  By staying home today, we will have each other longer to share good times and gatherings in the future.”

A flattening of the number of coronavirus cases in Oregon should persist until at least mid-May if stay-at-home orders are followed. But top officials say modeling beyond then is uncertain and its too soon to tell when the restrictions can be relaxed. Gov. Kate Brown said the state will be strapped for money because of the massive numbers of layoffs and furloughs the stay-home order has caused. She said she is focused on keeping people in their homes through paying rent and mortgage, ensuring that people get adequate food and have access to health care.

Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation to compel federal health officials to post data daily that breaks down COVID-19 cases and deaths by race and ethnicity. The lawmakers say the demographic data is needed to address any disparities in the national response to the coronavirus outbreak, which is taking a disproportionate toll on African Americans and other nonwhite populations. If passed, the legislation introduced Tuesday in the House and Senate would require the Department of Health and Human Services to collect data on race, ethnicity, sex, age and socioeconomic status, among other demographic information on those tested and treated for COVID-19. The information would be posted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.